Which Justices File Concurrences Most Often in Criminal Cases (Part 1 – 2000-2007)?

Yesterday, we analyzed the Justices’ concurrences in civil cases between 2000 and 2007. Today, we turn our attention to the Court’s criminal cases between 2000 and 2007.

Concurrences were on a downward slope during these years. The Court’s most busy year was 2000, when there were 28 concurrences filed in criminal, quasi-criminal and juvenile matters. There were 25 the next year, 22 in 2002, 18 in 2003, 19 in 2004, 13 in 2005, only 4 in 2006, and 13 in 2007. For 2000, Justice Mosk led the Court, filing ten concurrences in criminal matters. Justices Brown and Kennard were next with five apiece, Justice Werdegar filed four, and Justices Chin and Baxter filed two each. For 2001, Justices Kennard and Werdegar led, writing seven criminal concurrences apiece. Justice Mosk wrote five, and Justice Brown wrote three. For 2002, Justice Werdegar led, filing eight concurrences in criminal matters. Justice Brown wrote five, Justice Moreno wrote four, and Justices Kennard and Baxter wrote two apiece. For 2003, Justice Kennard wrote six, Justice Baxter four and Justice Moreno three. For 2004, Justice Werdegar led with six concurrences in criminal cases. Justice Moreno wrote four, and Justices Kennard and Chin wrote three apiece. For 2005, Justice Brown led with five concurrences. Justices Kennard, Chin, Baxter and Moreno were next, each writing two. During the light year in 2006, Justice Werdegar led with two concurrences in criminal matters, and Justices Kennard and Baxter wrote one each. Finally, in 2007, Justice Werdegar again led with five, followed by Justices Kennard and Baxter with three each, and Justice Moreno with two.

Reviewing the data below shows no clear pattern in terms of any Justice consistently writing the most lengthy concurrences, but Justices Kennard and Baxter generally wrote shorter ones during these years. In 2000, Justice Brown averaged the longest concurrences at 5.6 pages. Justice Chin averaged 4.5 pages, Justice Werdegar four pages and Justice Kennard averaged 3.2 pages. Justices Mosk and Baxter averaged the shortest concurrences – 2.3 and 2 pages, respectively. For 2001 and 2002, Chief Justice George averaged the longest concurrences (7.5 and 17 pages), but this number isn’t especially meaningful since it’s based on only three opinions. Among the rest of the Court, in 2001 Justices Chin and Mosk averaged four pages, Justice Brown averaged 3.67, Justice Werdegar 3.14 pages, and Justice Kennard 2.29 pages. For 2002, Justices Moreno and Baxter averaged 4.75 and 4.5 pages. Justice Werdegar averaged 3.75 pages, Justice Brown averaged 3.4, and Justice Kennard averaged 1.5 pages per concurrence. The following year, Justice Brown averaged four pages per concurrence, but the other Justices were bunched closely together – Justice Baxter 3.75, Justice Werdegar 3.5, Justices Kennard, Chin and Moreno, three pages. For 2004, Justice Werdegar averaged four pages per concurrence. Justice Moreno averaged three pages, and Justices Brown, Chin and Baxter averaged two apiece. For 2005, Justices Brown and Werdegar led the Court, at 6.75 pages and 6 pages, respectively. Justice Moreno averaged 3.5 pages per concurrence that year, Justice Kennard averaged 2.5 pages, and Justices Chin and Baxter averaged two pages. For 2006, Justice Baxter led with a six page average, and Justices Kennard and Werdegar averaged two each. Finally, for 2007, Justice Werdegar led the Court, averaging 4.8 pages per concurrence. Justice Kennard averaged 4.67 pages, Justice Baxter three pages, and Justice Moreno two.

Join us back here next Thursday as we turn our attention to the concurrences in the civil and criminal dockets during the years 2008 through 2015.

About this Blog

In the next few years, data analytics will revolutionize litigation. At the California Supreme Court Review, we’ve mined dozens of data points from every one of the more than 3,000 decisions handed down by the California Supreme Court from 1990 through 2017. We use that unique database to share new insights culled from tens of thousands of pages of opinions about the Justices and their decision-making process, the parties and issues which come before the Court.